Panasonic Jungle Being Tested in the United States

The portable gaming market is looking like it will get a bit more interesting in 2011, as Panasonic seems intent on launching their own portable console. After being unveiled last month, there were some who believed that it would be a pipe-dream, and never make it out of the gate. But Panasonic doesn’t see it that way, and they’ve moved onto the testing stage for the device, focusing on consumers in the United States.

Recently, Panasonic began sending out emails to US-based consumers, informing them that they had been chosen to test the Jungle, the company’s portable video game console. Panasonic’s spokesman out of Tokyo, Akira Kadota, has confirmed that the emails were sent out to consumers, but would not go into detail about the console. The price, let alone the specifications for the device, are still unknown at this point.

It is known, though, that Panasonic won’t be focusing on the “traditional” video game strategy. Unlike Sony and Nintendo, Panasonic’s Jungle portable gaming device will focus on multiplayer gamers, like Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games (MMORPG). The only title that’s been talked about so far, is a Battlestar Galactica title, which will let you play as either a human, or a Cylon. The console itself will feature a QWERTY keyboard, as well as a touchpad.